Last week, we learned of a Scripps Florida spinoff being bought out and shipped out of state.
Tuesday at the UM Life Science and Technology Park dedication, I heard from a biotech investor who complained “We don’t have enough money, and enough risk tolerance here, to compete with Boston and San Diego. The spinoffs will keep following the money out of town.”
That was two days ago. Then today I read Beth Kassab in the Orlando Sentinel reporting on Gov. Rick Scott’s address to the Florida Chamber of Commerce Future of Florida Forum:
That’s why it’s so surprising that when Scott spoke to business leaders earlier this week in Orlando at the Florida Chamber of Commerce’s Future of Florida Forum, he didn’t mention one of the biggest obstacles for biotech and other emerging sectors today: Florida’s dearth of venture capital.
Five minutes later, news out of Tampa confirms it:
“TourWrist is a win for Tampa and demonstrates that we have the means to incubate hot companies and prepare them for Silicon Valley’s venture scene,” said Brent Britton, an attorney at Gray Robinson and advisor to TourWrist. “It’s unfortunate TourWrist could not get funded here. We’ll miss the jobs they would have created.”
Britton noted that technology investing takes skill and a tolerance for risk, and there’s a common sentiment that “Tampa’s early stage investors wouldn’t know a hot startup if it bit them on the rotary phone they use to dial up their AOL account. But I think we can change that.”
I may not be smart, but I can spot a trend when it smacks me in the head.